The Foresaken
by Demon Flame
Summary: Rogue is with the Brotherhood until she comes to the X-Men for help. In anger at her past transgressions, they turn her away. Only one can see past her hurt to bring her back.
1. Chapter 1

Rogue stood outside the front gates of the impressive mansion that was the home of the X-Men, her enemy. But now she needed their help, or to be more precise, she needed Xavier's help. He was the only one who could help her now, that was, if he ordered his team not to kill her. She was frozen to the spot in her green hooded cloak as the X-Men all stood in front of her, a barrier between her and their home. Their body language making it clear that she would not pass.

They looked absolutely livid, ready to deliver the kill shot at the slightest movement from her. She wanted to run, its what she did best, but knew she couldn't so she stood her ground and tried to force herself to speak. "Ah, ah need ta speak ta Professor Xavier." She managed to stutter out. This seemed to stir up more animosity in the group.

"Why? Ya gonna try and kill him too?" The Wolverine snarled, his adamantium claws glinting dangerously in the remaining sunlight.

Rogue willed back the tears. She hadn't meant to kill Carol Danvers, her hand had literally been forced. But she couldn't live with the furious mutant tearing apart her mind any more. Hell, Rogue had even attempted suicide but found it impossible with Ms. Marvel's powers. So now she was here, seeking the most powerful telepath in the world's help.

"Please." She begged weakly.

"I think you should leave Rogue." Cyclopes, the leader of the X-Men told her diplomatically.

Rogue noticed the sky had started to darken and at his words a flash of lightning had split the sky, followed by a loud clap of thunder. It was obvious that they would rather see her suffer as much as they had in the last month than offer her any sort of help. Rogue looked down to the ground, would she always be a such plague? With a nod, Rogue turned and walked away. She let the tears flow freely now but remained silent. Her only hope had rejected her with such obvious disdain that she desperately wished she could just curl up and die in some dark hole.

XxX

Jean watched the retreating form of Rogue, she hadn't exuded any of the confidence she normally had on the battle field. She even seemed like a lost child almost.

"Can you like believe her?" Kitty asked outraged from beside her to the group as a whole.

Jean said nothing but her teammates spoke freely. "Ja, how dare she show her face here!" Kurt spoke up. He was normaly accepting of all those around him and remained forgiving to even the most hate filled of people. The acid in his tone surprised her.

It had been a month since Rogue had killed Carol and the mansion was still mourning the loss of one of their most beloved team members. Jean hadn't seen it happen personally, she had been on the other side of the battlefield at the time, but over the last month she had caught glimpses of people who had seen it projecting their hurt and anger. Rogue had gone from possible Brotherhood threat to public enemy number one in the span of three minutes.

"She ever comes here again and I'll kill her." Logan growled so low that the threat sounded more animal then human. Jean was surprised Scott didn't scold him and give him the 'X-Men don't kill' lecture he normally did.

The rest of the X-Men apparently agreed because there were various 'yeah's' and a few 'I want a piece too'. This was not how Xavier had trained and taught his X-Men. They all turned to go back into the mansion when they were sure that Rogue was leaveing but Jean couldn't help but glance back at her and what she saw surprised her even more than when Rogue had asked to speak to the Professor.

Her slim green clad form was shaking with silent sobs of anguish, the emotion so strong that, even though she wasn't an empath, she could feel. Jean bit her lip for only a moment before opening her mind and reaching out to her with her telepathy. Her mind was a jumbled mess but Jean was able to catch one thought or rather mantra. _"Please God, just let me die."_ That sentence alone made up her mind. She would see the Professor and see what his views on Rogue were. Right now her teammates were too full of hate to help this little girl who was so obviously in need of help.

Jean walked briskly past Scott and the her other teammates, ignoring the odd looks they gave her. She made a bee line for her mentors office and didn't even bother announcing her arrival with a knock. She shut the door quickly behind her and turned to face the Professor who was watching her with a small smile on his face. She swore he could see into the future sometimes.

"Professor, it's about Rogue." She started. He nodded and motioned for her to take a seat. "I believe that she truly needs our help. I know I shouldn't have but I took a quick peek into her mind." She explained. "Its absolute chaos, whatever has happened to her is serious.

"I know the others are still hurting from Carols death at the hands of Rogue, I am too." Jean said and bowed her head before raising her head and fixing Xavier with a determined glare. "But I can't ignore a plea for help, you taught me that."

During her explanation, Xavier had come to rest his elbows on his desk and had his hand steeped in front of him. "Jean, out of all my students and all the years I have been fighting for mutant equality, this is perhaps my proudest moment." A sudden weight lifted off her chest as she saw that the Professor was willing to help. "You saw through your own pain and put someone who needed help more than yourself first. That is what I have been trying to engrain into all my students and that is what being an X-Men is truly about.

"Now, I'll need you to convince her to come back so that we may help her." Xavier said. Jean opened her mouth to voice her concerns about her comrades when Xavier held a hand up to stop her. "And don't worry, I'll tell the team."

Jean smiled and in a moment of pure happiness she stood up and rushed over to give him a hug. "Thank you Professor! I'll go look for her now, you wouldn't by chance be able to point me in the right direction?" She asked hopefully. While still a better then average telepath, she was no Charles Xavier.

"Try the park." He said with a chuckle and Jean rushed off as though she were a fourteen year old girl again instead of the nearly thirty year old woman she was.

XxX

"_X-men, please report to my office."_ Xavier asked of his team through a mental link.

He wondered how best to tell his team that their most hated enemy would now be living under the same roof with them. His dread and irratbility grew as they all straggled in one by one, they were still discussing their outrage over Rogue coming to the institute gates. He waited until they were all in various spots in his office, some standing, others sitting. Cyclopes, Storm, Beast, Wolverine, Iceman, Shadowcat, Colossus, Psylock, Nightcrawler and Emma were all before him waiting patiently.

"When I first started this institute, it was to help those mutants in need, no matter their background or their past transgressions." He started, looking each and every one of them in the eye. "Today I realized that I have failed you."

He was met with furred brows and questioning gazes, but no one spoke up. "A mutant who was truly in need of our help came to you and you turned her away with death threats and hateful words." He held his hand up to signal silence as several opened their mouths to voice objection. "Do not pretend none of you have done things in your past that you don't regret. She is a lost child in over her head and only one of you was able to see past their own problems and put someone else first."

There was silence as he surveyed their angry and guilty faces. "I have asked Jean to try and convince her to come back, I hope for your sakes as well as hers, that we aren't too late." And with a great swell of disappointment he dismissed them.

XxX

Rogue had managed to lock herself in the women's bathroom at the park, for tonight it would be her home. She was huddled up on a small wooden bench in front of the stalls, it would probably get below freezing tonight, maybe if she was lucky she would die in her sleep. She clutched her head as another wave of pain and screaming erupted in her mind. She felt the tears slide down her cheeks, Rogue had never been one to cry but this was just too much.

She needed release, the psyches in her head screamed for her death and now after all these years she wanted to die. The world was a better and safer place if she wasn't a part of it, the only problem now was that she had Carol's powers. They would come and go at odd times, usually when she was in a stressful state, which made it difficult to end her life. Had she really been that terrible in life to not even be granted death?

She was brought out of her thoughts as she heard a knock on the locked door to the bathroom. Rogue hoped if she ignored the person they would just go away. But since when have the fates ever smile on her? The knocking continued, this time a little more determinedly.

"Rogue? I know you're in there, open the door." Came the calm and confident female voice of the knocker.

Fear gripped her chest, was it her mother come to beat her for leaving? No it sounded like one of the X-Men, Jean Grey if she wasn't mistaken. But that wasn't much better, she had probably come for retribution for her fallen comrade. Rogue couldn't force herself to move she was so paralyzed with fear, she was trapped in what would probably become her crime scene.

There was a sigh from the other side of the door and Rogue heard the lock click open. This was it, she would die here in this dingy bathroom. It was what she deserved, after all the people she had wronged, she deserved to die like a rat in a public bathroom. Her body wouldn't be found for days and would probably be frozen and she would be buried as a Jane Doe.

XxX

Jean pushed the door open and was greeted with a terrible sight that would probably haunt her for years to come. On a small wooden bench sat Rogue, she was facing the door and had her knees pulled up to her chest. Her eyes were red and puffy and there were tear tracks down her dirty cheeks. Her face looked almost hallow and sunken compared to that day on the battlefield only a month ago.

"Rogue, what are you doing in here?" She asked as she gestured to the dirty bathroom.

"Ah, needed a place ta stay, Ah promise Ah'll be gone before mornin'." She stuttered out in a panic.

Jean felt a great swell of sympathy for the poor girl. She looked to be younger then Kitty who was only nineteen, how could one so young feel so much pain and be so lonely? "No Rogue," Jean hopped if she kept using her name that maybe she would be able to establish a kind of connection with her. "I want you to come with me, Professor Xavier wants to help you." She said taking a step forward.

Rogue flinched at the movement and licked her dry and chapped lips. "But, Ah thought yall didn't want ta help me." She said.

Jean hung her head a little in shame. "We were wrong Rogue. As X-Men it is our job to help those in need and you need our help." Jean took another step forward and again Rogue flinched, this time her eyes darted to . "Can you please forgive us?" She asked and held out a hand to the girl.

Rogue gave a short nervous laugh and looked away. "Me? Forgive ya? Shouldn't it be the other way around?" she asked quietly.

Jean took another step forward and for a third time Rogue flinched and pushed herself into the wall behind her. "We've all made mistakes, but that doesn't mean you don't deserve help." Rogue looked up to her and she had a glint of hope in her eyes that seemed so hollow. "Rogue, I promise I won't hurt you."

"Ah've caused ya team enough pain," She said after a moment. "Ah don't wanna cause anymore. It was stupid ta go ta y'all."

Jean sat down so that she was eye level with the teen, "Rogue, please come with me." She begged, she just couldn't let her go now.

Rogue bit her lip and after a moment nodded. Jean let out a breath that she didn't know she had been holding. She held out her hand and waited for Rogue to take it and after a full minute she finally did. Jean feared that reaching this girl would be one of the hardest things in her life.

**A/N**

**So as some of you know this is an old story that I had put up for adoption last year. Recently inspiration struck and I figured I'd have another go at it. I'm going through and tweaking things hear or there but for the most part it'll be the same. Hope to see some reviews on this and if you are wondering about my other story, **_**Silver Lining, **_**I put something on my profile about it. I'll publish a new chapter once a day.**


	2. Chapter 2

Rogue knew this was a bad idea from the moment she had taken hold of Ms. Grey's hand in the bathroom. Dread swallowed her whole as she stepped out of her car and followed the X-Man in through the front door. She kept her head low and her hood pulled up, she really just couldn't bear to face any of these people again. She heard harsh whispers and muttered death threats as she passed the various rooms throughout the mansion. Ms. Grey finally lead her through a large oak door and out of the public eye, Rogue followed without question.

For the first time since she had entered the mansion she looked up and saw that she had just walked into a grand office. Well, it might not be grand by other's standards, but it was the nicest place she had ever been. The walls were lined with hundreds of books and beautiful works of art. One of those paintings alone was probably worth more than her. Behind an impressive oak desk sat the legendary Charles Xavier, he was smiling warmly at her, like a king smiling upon a dirty peasant. Off to the left side of his desk stood the fearless X-Man leader, Cyclopes, and next to him was Beast, the blue haired ape man.

"Welcome Rogue, I'm glad you decided to give us a second chance. Please take a seat." He said gesturing to two chairs in front of him.

Rogue nodded and immediately took a seat to avoid offending him, Jean took the seat next to her. She kept her gaze on the Professor but kept her head down to show him she had no illusions about her worth. She knew she was an outsider and didn't belong here, she confirmed this from the look of contempt on Cyclopes' and Beast's faces.

"Now first things first, how exactly do your powers work?" He asked, looking intensly curious at her, as though she were a specimen to be disected.

Rogue swallowed the lump in her throat. "Ah'm not sure o' the technical terms, but I know when Ah touch someone with my skin Ah absorb them. It's like Ah take a little part of their mind and copy it ta mine." She explained and glanced nervously around at the other occupants. "Ah get their memories an' thoughts an' physical abilities," she gulped at the lump again. "An' if they have powers Ah get those fo' a short time."

"Interesting," He said quietly reminding her of Magneto. "Do you retain the memories?"

"Yes, sir. They stay in my head forever." She answered. She could still hear Cody Robbins in the back of her mind screaming.

"Well, we'll look more into this tomorrow, but for now let's have you examined and fed before I have Jean set you up in one of the spare bedrooms." He said with a warm smile.

Alarm suddenly rose up in Rogue. "Oh no sir, Ah can just come back in the mornin'." She said, determined not to be a burden to them any more then was necessary.

"Rogue, we can't let you freeze to death in the ladies room at the park. You'll be much safer here." Jean said like a mother to a child. "Don't worry, your safe here with me." She added softly, with a warm smile of her own.

Rogue glanced to the still unwelcoming faces of the other two silent men in the room and couldn't help but think only Ms. Grey and the Professor were willing to help her. After a moment she nodded her head and returned her gaze to the floor as though she had been scolded. She missed the look that passed between Xavier and Jean.

"Well come on Rogue, we'll have Dr. McCoy run some tests on you to make sure there's nothing wrong." She said as she rose from her seat, Rogue obidently followed suit.

She wanted to tell her that she didn't need a doctor to tell her there was anything wrong, and she really didn't want to allow Beast to poke and prod her. She didn't want these people to see her, something her momma always taught her was to never bleed when you swam with sharks and she was already in the open water with fresh wounds.

XxX

Jean noticed that she really seemed to despise the idea of going down to the med lab and kept tugging at her hood as though she hoped it would make her invisible. Jean had a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach as they all stepped into the sterile med lab and Hank motioned for her to sit on an examining table. She glanced at Jean before complying, but she still didn't remover her cloak.

"I'll need you to remove your cloak." Hank said tersely as he pulled on his doctors coat and a pair of latex gloves. Jean jumped into action and pulled out a blank medical file and a clipboard.

When she returned she saw that Rogue was slowly removing what appeared to be her security blanket with her head down. The first thing Jean noticed was her dirty and worn cloths the second was that it appeared as if someone had duct tapped her gloves to her skin. Hank gave a raised eyebrow but said nothing on it as he told her to sit down again. She did so and refused to meet anyone's eye, Jean thought she might be trying to not cry.

"First things first, what is your real name?" Hank asked after Jean handed him the clip board.

"Ah, d-don't know my name." She admitted to him quitely.

"Now really, if you expect us to help you, you need to give us some information." He said annoyed.

He apparently missed the single tear that rolled down her cheek. Jean walked forward and placed a friendly hand on the young girls shoulder. "Rogue, do you remember anything before joining the Brotherhood?" she asked hoping her suspicions weren't correct.

"Ah can remember something's but not a lot." She said quietly, still refusing to look up.

"Rogue it is then." Hank said as he scribbled her name down on her medical record. "Do you know your birthday." She shook her head no and he pursed his lips together. "I suppose it would be too much to ask if you know any of your medical history?"

She still didn't look up and shook her head no. He sighed in irritation as he rolled his stool over to a cabinet and pulled out a hospital gown he rolled back over to her and thrust it in her direction. "We are going to have to do an entire medical chart the old fashion way. Go change in there." He said pointing toward the bathroom.

She nodded and hurried toward the bathroom and shut the door behind her softly. Jean turned back toward her long time friend. "Do you think you can be a little more sensitive?" She snapped harshly.

Hank didn't respond as he began preparing his work station, he clearly didn't agree with having Rogue here. Jean sighed but said nothing more as they waited for Rogue to return. She stepped out of the bathroom a few minutes later with her head hung. Jean was startled to see how thin she was and was even more surprised to see that she had kept her gloves duct tapped to her arms. Around the tape her skin looked painful and swollen.

"Rogue why do you have your gloved duct taped to your arms?" She asked cautiously.

She looked to be in pain at the question as though she desperatly wished they wouldn't ask about it. "Ah accidently absorbed Magento once and after that he told Sabertooth ta make sure my gloves stayed on at all times unless in a fight." She slowly admitted.

Jean frowned, did Magneto really think so little of his inferiors? She glanced at Hank to see that she wasn't the only one upset by this, at least she was starting to get through. Rogue resumed her spot on the examination table and kept her head low and drew into herself. On closer inspection of Rogue's bare arms and legs, Jean could see the shiny, silvery flesh of scar tissue.

"Where did you get these scars?" Hank asked as he examined one particular nasty scar on her shin.

"Most of 'em are from before Ah got my powers but Ah can't remember what from." She stated. Jean and Hank exchanged a look before continuing with the rest of the examination. She just knew they were about to get a firsthand look in the life of a Rogue.

XxX

Jean stood next to Hank in her office with Ororo, Kurt, Scott, Logan and Xavier seated before them. On the lit up board behind her were Rogue's x-rays. Out of all the senior x-men, only Hank, Jean and the Professor could read an x-ray properly. But even the others could tell something was wrong with Rogues bones.

"Vhat are all those grey lines." Kurt asked as he squinted at the x-rays.

"Those, Kurt, are fractures. It seems as though Rogue has lead a difficult." Hank said as he pointed to fainter grey lines. "These are breaks she sustained as a child, more of an infant actually. And these are less than a few months old." He said pointing to darker grey lines.

"Due to the density of her bones we believe she has been malnuorished on and off since she was five." Jean pointed out. "I'm afraid when she joined the Brotherhood things didn't get much better, Magneto forced her to have her gloves duct taped to her wrists at all times unless she was in battle." She splayed the blown up photo's they had taken of her wrists.

It had taken a full hour to convince her to let them remove the duct tape so they could treat the angry red welts. Even though both she and Hank had been properly cover to administer her treatment she had still flinched and trembled when they came near to her exposed flesh.

Logan snorted from his position by the door, unimpressed. "So the kid had a tough life, who here hasn't?" He said and chewed on the end of that old cigar.

"I'm afraid it's more than that, we've had to place her on a suicide watch." Hank said.

Jean followed Ororo's eyes to Rogue who was sitting on the examination table, she had her knees pulled to her chest and was hugging them. She looked so vulnerable all curled up like that.

"Why ever would she want that?" Ororo asked, muted horror on her regal features.

"I can answer that." The Professor said as everyone turned to him. "As part of her powers, everyone she has ever absorbed stays in her mind. Due to her lack of control and mental shields the psyches in her head threaten her sanity on a twenty-four hour basis." He explained.

"And what exactly does that mean?" Logan asked still unconvinced.

Jean decided to speak up again. "Rogue has absorbed us all at least once." She started. "When she absorbs someone, she takes their surface thoughts and the strongest memories, usually ones we ourselves fear. The psyches feed of these memories and her own heightened emotions to torment her at all hours of the day.

"Her head is a jumbled mess, she can't even remember her own name." Jean held up her hand to silence Logan who would no doubt trivialize memory loss. "And no Logan, its nothing like having your memory wiped. She is too overwhelmed by everyone else's memories that she can hardly remember any of her own personal information, in fact, the only thing she knows from her life before becoming a mutant was that she lived in Mississippi."

"I think part of the reason she sought out our help was that on some level she was hoping we would kill her." Hank said after a moment of silence.

"Well, then as X-Men it is our job to help her." Scott finally spoke up not sounding a bit happy about it.

Jean was still disappointed to see that only herself, Hank and Xavier were the only ones willing to help the girl. The others were still ready to attack at a moment's notice. Xavier dismissed them and Jean sent a telekinetic slap to Logan's head when he growled at Rogue as he passed. She was so on edge and so absorbed into herself that she nearly jumped out of her skin at the sound. Logan, was no doubt satisfied with himself.

"I think that when Gambit gets back from handling his family business that we should send him on a little mission." Hank said bringing her thoughts back to the men in her office.

"I agree." The Professor said. "Magneto keeps extensive files on all the mutants he comes across."

Jean smiled. "It seems like Gambit is our man then." Hopefully they would be able to get a little more information on Rogue and would be able to help her better.

A/N

Hope you all enjoyed, you know what to do!


	3. Chapter 3

It had been a week since Rogue had come to live at the mansion and Logan was still anything but excited about it. He also hated not knowing what memories she had from him. Xavier, Hank and Jean had all taken to babying her, when he had suggested they pop the titty out her mouth he had received the cold shoulder from Jean and a lecture from both Xavier and Hank. What really pissed him off was that she wouldn't rise to any of his or the rest of the mansions picking, she just kept her head down and her mouth firmly shut.

Another thing that pissed him off was that when she wasn't working with Xavier or Jean, she was locked away in her room talking to herself. He had brought this up to the Professor once and he had said that Rogue was trying to get her psyches to leave her alone, to be quiet if only for a few moments. Personally, Logan thought she deserved what she got, he liked to think that karma caught up with her. That's what happens when you're a murderer. Logan of course ignored the fact that he too had killed people because he wasn't the one who had sucked every last drop of life out of Carol.

He was currently stewing over this with a beer in hand when none other than Gambit walked in, whistling a jaunty tune. The Cajun theif turned to Logan and smiled. "Bonjour mon ami." He said brightly but then frowned a bit. "What ya no' happy ta see ol' Gambit?" he joked.

Logan should have known he would be able to tell if he was in a more fouler mood than usual. Damn empath. "Newest charity case." He growled out. Gambit didn't know about Rogue coming to them for help, he had just gotten back not two minutes ago.

Gambit raised an eyebrow and went for the fridge, no doubtedly to get a beer as well. "What? Someone else tryin' ta get in Jeans pants?" he asked smartly with a grin.

Logan rolled his eyes. "You remember that little Brotherhood bitch who killed Danvers?" he asked.

"Non, dat was before my time." He drawled out before he took a swig from his own bottle. That's right, the Cajun had joined up a week after Carol's murder. "But Ah remember Stormy tellin' me 'bout it." he said.

"Jean and Chuck have taken her in. She claims she needs help," he snorted. "Probably just wants to kill the rest of us too." He took a swig of beer.

"Is dat why everyone here is so pissed off?" he asked somewhat annoyed.

"Yeah pretty much."

Gambit opened his mouth to comment further but he took on a startled expression and about that time Logan heard a scream pierce the air. Both men jumped into action and ran down the halls of the institute. Students were sticking their heads out of the door. "Get back in your rooms now!" Logan roared at them.

They reached the teacher's wing and Logan kicked open the door he was sure belonged to Rogue. His claws were unsheathed and ready to attack either an intruder or her. She was peeking over the edge of her bed from where she had dived when he came and had a look of terror on her face. Gambit pushed him aside and began looking around for the cause, he didn't know Rogue was the murderer. On closer inspection he saw that she was drenched in sweat and was trembling, probably rightly guilt ridden.

He retracted his claws and frowned. "Let me guess, bad dream?" He sneered.

She didn't answer and Jean rushed in, still dressed in the outfit she had worn earlier. "Rogue? are you okay?" She asked and then looked between Gambit and Logan. "Get out!" she ordered. And because she was apparently in a rush she forced them out with her telekinesis.

The door slammed shut behind them as Logan glowered at the door. "What the hell was that about?" Remy asked, beyond confused.

"I believe I can explain." Xavier said as he rolled down the hall to them and the gathering crowd of mutants. "Today during one of our training sessions we accidently uncovered a buried memory of Rogues that I'm afraid she has just relived. It was quiet traumatizing and tomorrow we will attempt to erase the memory completely." He told them all.

Logan and a few others scoffed. "How bad could it be Chuck?" There weren;t a lot of things worse then the broken meomories of his.

"It was terrifying." The normally cool Emma spoke up from the back of the group. Beside her was a trembling Betsy, both a ghastly white.

"She was projecting, it was so awful." Came her British voice weakly. "That was her?" Xavier just nodded with a frown.

"Well what was it about? Let me guess she killed someone else?" Bobby asked coldly from his position by Kitty.

"N-no, she was in some type of ally." Betsy said, her voice shaking and watery. "There was this beastly man attacking her and telling her all sorts of things. She couldn't have been older then fifteen."

"Oh God, I can still feel the knife in me." Emma said, her face extreamly white.

That confession shut Bobby and all the other X-Men up. "I ask you all to keep this to yourselves, the last thing she needs is you tormenting her even more about her past." Xavier said gravely before rolling back down the.

The silence in the hall was heavy as none of them turned to leave, only the sound of Jean trying to calm down the distraught mutant. Logan and never realized she had gone through any hardship like that, it was probably what made her into the cold blooded killer she was today.

"So let me get this straight." Gambit said looking down, and Logan could see his red eyes glowing brightly. "Y'all have been tormentin' that girl all because o' one little mistake?" The anger flowing off him seemed to crackle in the air around him.

"One little mistake!" Kitty said outraged. "She murdered one of my best friends!"

When Gambit finally looked up Logan understood the reason why he was called a devil because even he took an involuntary step back. "So ya t'ink drivin' her ta suicide will make up for it?" His voice was deadly calm.

"Well she's already attempted it a few times that's why Beast has her on suicide watch." Emma countered her cool demeanor back in place, though her color had not returned.

Gambit turned his gaze to her and Logan was satisfied to see that her cocky smirk faltered under his wrath. "An' here Ah was under the X-Men were all about helpin' those in need an' second chances. Guess we better make her pack her bags since no one else here has sinned." He said his voice still eerily calm. He turned on his heel and stormed down the hall, no doubt to work of his frustrations in the Danger Room.

XxX

Jean read the file that Remy had stolen out loud for the rest of the people in the room to hear.

"Subject: Rogue

Birth Name: Unknown

Birth Date: Unknown. Suspected to born in the year 1992.

Biological Mother: Raven Darkholme. Subject is unaware of her true relationship, but still refers to Mystique as her mother.

Biological Father: Unknown

Sibling(s): Graydon Creed, Kurt Wagner. Subject is unaware of relationship.

Mutation: Energy absorption. Subject may absorb the others memories, physical abilities and powers if applicable."

She read out and then flipped through the rest of the file. "The rest of this is hospital records and a list of known absorptions and suspected abortions. There's also a file here that goes in depth on her stay in the foster system and by the looks of it you were right, Hank. The first case of abuse was in 1993." Jean's frown deepened. It was as if Rogues suffering would never end.

"So vat does this mean?" Kurt asked. He must have been a little taken aback to discover the source of his hate was his own half sister.

"Means ya been tryin' ta get ya sister ta kill herself." Gambit snarled savagely from his corner in the Professors office.

Ever since the night he had come back he had stuck up for Rogue, at first Jean thought it was due to all the emotion rolling of Rogue but she soon wondered if they were more like kindred spirits. She was surprised to learn that even after Emma and Betsy had seen firsthand what Rogue had been through, they still held firm to their prejudice against her. Jean looked over to Kurt to see him hanging his head in shame, she had always expected better of Kurt but he too got swept up in the hatred.

"How are your sessions going with Rogue?" Hank asked, changing the subject before it could escalate.

Xavier looked down to his desk and shook his head. "Not well, it seems her psyches are trying to kill her and are being lead by Carol." Xavier held up a hand as several people around the room stood up in indignation. "What you must understand is that the psyches in her mind believe they are real and are trapped. Carol is trying to take over control of Rogue so that she may kill her. Rogue does not wish them to be there anymore than they wish to be in there."

"Maybe she should have thought of that before she absorbed them." Bobby said heatedly.

There was a small explosion as Gambit had apparently thrown a charged card at the back of Iceman's head. Jean couldn't bring herself to scold Remy because she truthfully thought he deserved it. She was getting tired of all her friends tormenting this girl, she knew Emma and Betsy knew that she cried herself to sleep every night. She knew the others knew too because Emma thought it was funny to gossip about the poor crazy, untouchable Rogue.

Bobby turned around and glared at the Cajun who glared right back. "Enough." Xavier said, raising his voice. "If Rogue is too beneath you to help then please feel free to pack you things and leave, you will be missed but I will tolerate this no longer."

Jean hide her shock at his raised voice well because whole heartedly agreed. She looked around the room but no one moved. So far other than the kids the only real people who went out of their way to torment Rogue was Logan, Bobby, Kitty and Emma. The others remained cold and liked to pretend she wasn't there, she hoped now that Kurt knew of his relation to Rogue he would put forth more effort to help her.

"Now that that's settled I believe half of you have a Danger room training session." He said dismissing them all. "Oh Gambit, could you please take Rogue her dinner? I'm afraid after Ms. Smiths little prank at lunch she is refusing to be around the students." Gambit nodded before leaving the room.


	4. Chapter 4

Rogue sat Indian style on the far corner of her bed as she watched the students play in the remaining hours. It must be nice to have friends, have no worries. Rogue was interrupted from her thoughts by a knock on the door. If it was Jean she would just walk on in after a minute, if it was a student they would knock again before shouting obscenities through the door. Rogue didn't even turn to look as the door opened hoping it wasn't that Boom-Boom girl coming to get revenge for her detention.

"Cherie?" came the masculine voice of the Cajun who liked to sit by her at meals.

She didn't turn around, just kept starring out the window at the laughing children. She could honestly say she couldn't remember the last time she had laughed, what she wouldn't give to just start over. Maybe she could have stood a chance if she knew about this place before Mystique had found her.

"Ah brought ya dinner." He said trying to get her attention.

A whiff of the smell reached her nose and she felt like she might throw up. She turned to the man; he was certainly the most beautiful man she had ever seen. She had decided the most appealing part of him was his eyes; they were a beautiful combination of red iris and black scarla. She would love to stare into those eyes forever but knew it was impossible. There was no connection between them other than him following orders. At least he pretended to be nice to her even if she didn't deserve his kindness.

He set the plate on the empty desk and walked closer to her. Was he going to hit her for not talking? "Thank ya." She blurted out and he ceased all movement with his hands raised toward her like he was trying to apporach a wonded animal.

"Ah'm not gonna hurt ya chere." He said. How had he known she was thinking that very thing? Was he another telepath? "Ya mind if ah take a seat?" He asked backing up to the desk.

She nodded before turning back to the window. She wondered if things had been different if those kids would have considered her a friend. Would they want to be friends with someone who could kill them with the touch of their hand? Probably not, not even the brotherhood wanted much to do with her, they all avoided her like the plague, because that's what she was, a plague.

"Chere," The man said. "Are ya okay?" he asked.

"Are ya a telepath?" she asked quietly, not turning around.

"Non, Ah'm," He hesitated. "Somethin' else."

She frowned, she had only ever heard one other person answer like that and she had been an empath. Rogue had begun to notice the subtle differences between empath's and telepaths, while telepaths responded to thoughts, empath's responded to emotions. She also knew for a fact that empath's hated being anywhere near her because the psyches amplified her emotions.

"Empath?" she asked a little dully and turned to glance at him.

"Um, yeah. How'd ya know?" he asked a little sheepishly at being caught.

"Yo' like a telepath, only ya respond ta emotion instead of thoughts." She said but then added, "Ya mus' not be a very powerful empath, usually they can't stand bein' around me."

He gave her a half smirk. "Yeah, its mo' of a secondary mutation." He pulled out a playing card and Rogue watched in wonder as it lit up with a purple-ish red hue. "This is my primary power, Ah can charge any object wit' kinetic energy an when Ah let go it explodes." He said and then demonstrated by throwing the card into the air.

Rogue flinched at the pop; she couldn't help it she always flinched. "That's cool." She said with a sad smile, wishing she could have a power like that. Hell, she'd rather turn in to a puddle of water then have the mutation she has.

"Don' worry chere, you'll get control one day." He said.

Rogues smile faded and she turned back to the window. She didn't have the heart to say it aloud any more, she would never be able to control her powers. She was uncontrollable; the best she could hope for was to keep her mutation at bay. And the safest way to do that was to stay away from people, people only got hurt when they got close to her. It's why she refused to tell Kurt he was her brother, because if he knew he would feel as if he had to help her and that's the last thing she wanted, to feel like an obligation.

Rogue was jolted out of her thoughts as she felt a hand on her shoulder; she buried the urge to scream in surprise and instead jumped up and pressed her back to the wall. She had completely forgotten that man had been in the room with her. He looked startled at her sudden movement and had his hands raised in a non-threatening manner again.

"Chere, ya gotta calm down Ah'm not gonna hurt ya." He promised, but Rogue knew that a promise was nothing really. She nodded but kept her position by the wall. He sighed in defeat and backed up. "Chere if ya need anythin' my rooms right next ta yo's." He said before leaving and closing the door gently behind him.

He was one of the few people who didn't spit and hiss at her in the halls and for that she was grateful. At first Dr. McCoy had been hateful but then he had seen her scars and had asked where they came from; she knew he had taken pity on her. And pity was honestly something she would prefer to live without but knew that she would have to endure it, her scars, both physical and emotional, were too evident on her body.

After a moment Rogue returned to the edge of her bed to watch the carefree children below laugh and play. She allowed a small smile to creep up on her lips, at least they were happy. At this point in her life the only thing she could do was try to make other peoples life as painless as possible, and if she could make one person happy for just a moment then maybe her life wasn't a complete waste after all. But Rogue had never made anyone happy, people had laughed at her, hated her, and took pleasure from her, but she had never truly brightened someone. She probably never would.

XxX

Kurt paced outside her door as he thought of the best way to apologize to her, his sister. He had been praying for the last hour, asking God why he had ignored his teachings and let himself get swept away in the hurt and anger. It didn't matter that she was his sister, what mattered was that he would be responsible for her state of mind and possibly her suicide. It was unforgivable and he intended to make it right, he would be there for her and he would help her.

He bit his lip and raised his hand to knock on her door; it took another moment before he could force himself to actually make contact with the door. He waited for her to answer, to call through the door, but all he heard was silence. Was she even in there? He thought so, she hadn't been in the med lab and she didn't have a session with Jean or the Professor so she must be in her room. Maybe he should just go in, if she wanted him to leave then she would tell him and he would comply.

He slowly pushed the door open and saw her sitting on the edge of her bed, staring out the window. Her arms were wrapped across her chest and she hadn't even looked up when he walked in. He looked to her desk where a full plate of food sat cold, he had heard about Hanks' concern that she wasn't eating enough. Was she that unhappy that she was willing to die by any means necessary? The guilt in his chest tightened around his heart by tenfold knowing he had cause a portion of the pain she was feeling.

"Rogue?" he said and was surprised that his voice didn't crack.

She turned her head to look at him and for the first time he noticed how red her eyes were, she must have been crying all day. She looked like a lost child, how could he have treated her this way?

"I vanted to apologize for my behavior to you over the past week." He said, forcing himself not to look away from her. He needed to burn the image of her pain into his mind so he would never forget.

She averted her eyes from him and looked down to the floor. "Who told ya?" She asked quietly. It stuck Kurt harder when he realized this was the first time he had heard her speak since that day two weeks ago when they had turned her away. But what really confused him was to what she was talking about.

"Who told me vat?" He asked as he stepped further into the room and closed the door behind him.

"Who told ya we were family?" she clarified, not looking up. "You wouldn' be here otherwise."

"Oh," He said quietly. "We were able to get the file Magneto had on you. You know that I am your biological brother?" He asked. Maybe she would be more willing to accept him if she knew that they shared blood.

"Yeah, Ah know. Ah've absorbed Mystique before." She said and then returned her attention to the window.

So she knew and didn't say anything. "Why didn't you tell me?" He asked.

"Ah did somethin' terrible, Ah didn't want ya ta feel obligated ta force a connection." Her voice was chillingly emotionless.

Kurt hung his head in shame, that was exactly what he was doing, trying to force a connection. "Is it so bad to want a connection? You don't have to go throw life alone." He said. He wanted to move forward but it seemed as if his feet were rooted to the floor.

"Its better this way, Ah won't hurt anyone else." she told him. "After Ah get all these people locked away Ah'll leave."

"And where will you go, back to Mystique?" He asked hoping their mother hadn't sunk her claws to deep into his sister.

She shook her head. "No, momma won' take me back. She said Ah'm betrayin' her by comin' ta y'all for help." She said. "Ah think Ah'd just like ta disappear."

"Rogue, I am sorry, I should have not let my hurt blind me. Whether you are my sister or not I should not have acted that way. I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me." He asked hoping for the best.

She stood up and turned her body fully to him, her face confused. "Forgive ya? Shouldn't it be the other way around?"

He didn't know she had felt remorse about the death of Carol. "Why did you do it?" He asked. He had been wondering since it happened, it was the one question on everyone's minds, why?

She turned away, ashamed, and hugged her arms to her chest. "Momma told me Ah had ta absorb just a little of her." Her voice was distant, like she was reliving it. "But then she forced me ta hold on tighter," Rogue turned back to him. "Ah swear Ah wanted ta let go but momma said no and pushed me inta her. Ah never wanted ta kill her." SHe turned back around to him and hius heart clenched.

Tears had started to form in her eyes and were now rolling down her cheeks uncontrollably. Kurt had been there when Carol had died he had seen Rogue absorb her. He never thought about why his mother had been there holding Rogue to Carol but now it made sense. "Rogue has you told anyone that Mystique killed Carol through you?" He asked slowly, choosing his words carefully.

She shook her head. "Yo' the only one that asked." She said quietly, still refusing to look at him.

Kurt made a move to pull her in to a well needed hug but stopped himself; Jean had told him that she was terrified of contact of any sort. "Rogue, you should have told us sooner." He said.

"Somethin' Ah've learned over the years is that when someone's made up their mind, nothin's gonna change it. Not even the truth."

Again, shame clenched at his heart as he knew that he had done that same thing to her. He used to pride himself on being open and welcoming to people no matter their appearance or background. "Rogue, I do not blame you. Carol's death was not your fault. Our," he forced the next word out. "Mother, has let hate consume her and now seeks to make our lives as miserable as hers. She has already succeeded with Graydon, let us band together and rise above her teachings." He said as he walked forward.

"You are my sister, and I will protect you." He promised.

She looked up to him with a small sad smile. "Thank ya." She said looking like she might cry.

Kurt felt like his heart would burst if she started to cry again. He walked over closer to her and perched himself on the corner of her desk closest to her. She took her cue and resumed herself on the corner of her bed, only this time she was facing him. Kurt hope he could make up for lost time, he couldn't shake the feeling that he would never truly get to know her.


	5. Chapter 5

Jean had awoken that morning with a unsettleing feeling in her stomach. For some reason she felt that something horrible would happen and as the day progressed, her feeling only grew stronger. Things like this had of course happened before though not often, and always, those gut feelings of hers turned out to be true.

Currently she was sitting in on one of the Professor's sessions with Rogue. The girl still had yet to come out of her shell but some were making more of an effort to draw her out. Kurt had taken an interest in her and could often be found visiting in her room. From the times she had walked in on the two, it was to find Kurt crouched on the desk telling Rogue tales from his youth. Rogue never participated, only listened.

Ororo had also stepped up and had invited Rogue out to her green house garden, a rare occurence indeed. Rogue had yet to take her up on the offer, preferring the solitude of her room.

The only one who seemed to be making any head way with Rogue, outside of herself and Xavier, was Gambit. She had once commented that he could charm a nun out of her virtues, to which he replied with a wicked smirk. Gambit was a notorious flirt, his abilities as an empath helping him in that department.

Lately he was the only one who could coax Rogue from her room when she didn't have a session. He was also one of the few who could keep all the others in line. While Remy was handsome and charming the majority of the time, he could also look like the devil himself with the proper motivation.

A sudden intake of breath from Rogue and a cry of pain from the Professor shook her of her musing to focus on the session. Xavier was rubbing his temples while Rogue was clutching her head and bent over at the waist, whimpering.

Jean moved toward her mentor first out of instinct. "No Jean." He said but was cut off from speaking more when Rogue stood up abruptly and shrieked.

It was an awful sound that made her insides freeze.

Rogue stumbled about blindly for the exit to the room and then fell through the closed door using the mutation of Shadowcat.

"You must get to her." Xavier said. "Her mind is chaos, I accidentally triggered an evolution with her mutation."

"But Professor - "

Screams erupted from beyond the door followed by an explosion.

"Get her in the Danger Room and evacuate the children." He bellowed.

Jean nodded and took off at a dead run. Using her telepathy she sent a general call out to the other X-Men with the Professor's orders and raced toward the screaming and explosions.

The scene she arrived to wasn't what she had expected. Rogue was backing away from Tabitha's cherry bombs with her eyes shut tight. Rubble lay scattered across the entrance hall, presumably from the gaping hole in the ceiling.

Kitty came skidding to a halt beside her, face contorted in a mix of rage and horror. "I told you letting her stay here was a bad idea!" She screamed over another explosion.

Jean ignored her and raced forward to Rogue. One look at the blond bomb maker caused the explosions to cease for the time being at least. "Rogue." She said finally getting to where the girl stood. "Rogue, look at me."

It was best to make eye contact when sorting through one's mind as complicated as Rogue's.

"Ah - Ah can'." She whimpered. "My eyes burn!"

"Evacuate all the kids!" She threw over her shoulder at Kitty whose negative thoughts were currently working against her.

She tried to put her arm around Rogue's shoulder so as to guide her to the Danger Room, but the second Rogue felt her touch she violently jerked away and tripped over a chunk of plaster. Her eyes flew open and a red beam of light shot out taking out a wall and making a new hole in the ceiling.

Jean quickly sent up a telekinetic shield to prevent any plaster and beams from falling on her or Rogue. "Listen to me, we need to get you down to the Danger Room!"

Rogue had covered her eyes with her arms and was trying to crab crawl away from her. She would never get her down to the sub-levels like this.

_'Kurt!'_ She called out telepathiclly. _'I need you to teleport Rogue to the Danger Room now!" _She said before providing him with their location.

It was a second and one puff of black smoke later that the saintly demon affectionately known as Nightcrawler appeared by her side. "Rogue!" He cried. "What happened?"

"Xavier accidentally triggered an evolution in her mutation. It seems like she's able to recal powers she's absorbed before." She said and held up a hand to Iceman who made to run toward them. "Yo need to get her to the Danger Room now!"

Needing no further incentive, Kurt lunged for his sister and teleported them away.

XxX

Gambit looked up to the control room as the simulation around himself and Wolverine dissolved away. Stormy was up in the booth pressing buttons.

"What gives?" Logan hollered up at Stormy.

"There's a situation." She said into the speaker. "Rogue's mutation is evolving and it's become dangerous. We need the Danger Room to contain her."

Logan started mumbling under his breath as they both made for the exit. They were almost to the door when the sound of Kurt teleporting into the room reached their ears and Remy was hit with an onslaught of turmoil.

Turning around it was to see Rogue push Nightcrawler away so forcefully that he flew across the room and into the wall. Crumpling to the ground he did not get back up.

Logan rushed for Nightcrawler while Gambit rushed for Rogue. Her back was to him and even from across the expanse of the Danger Room he could see that she was shaking. She cried out and hunched over.

He paused in his running when a pair of feathery angel wings burst forth from her back in a gush of blood, tainting them red. She crouched down to the ground, hugging her torn shirt to her chest to at least maintain her modesty if nothing else.

Out of the corner of his eye he saw even Logan pause at the horrific sight of what appeared to be a fallen angel. Shaking off the alarm that had built up inside of him, he sprinted the rest of the way to Rogue and squatted down in front of her.

Her hands were bunched into fists, clutching the fabric of her tattered, blood soaked shirt. Tears were pouring down her face as though someone had turned on a tap.

"Chere?" He used the endearment he always used when speaking to her in hopes that it might help sooth her.

It didn't.

But that was probably due to six bone claws, reminiscent of Wolverine, tear through her skin. The blood trickling down her arms made his stomach churn. Surely if she lost much more blood she'd die before they ever got a chance to stop her. Her bloody wings lay limp on the ground next to her, quivering.

Moving his gaze to her face he saw that she had cut herself with blood dripping down a long gash on her cheek, marring her beautiful, if anguished, face. She had finally peeked her eyes open and was staring in fear down at her hands.

"Chere." She didn't seem to hear him.

He wasn't a powerful empath by any means, but the ability did afford him a type of hypnotic charm. It seemed to him, that this lash out in her powers was fueled by her anxiety. If he could manage to charm her enough to calm her down then one of the telepaths could finish the job. Of course it could always work the opposite and she could kill them all when a more offensive power came into play.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained. There was a reason he was called Gambit.

She seemed in shock and he took the opportunity to move into her personal bubble and cup her face with his covered hand, being careful to keep his three uncovered fingers away from her skin. Her brilliant green eyes were wide with fear.

"Jus' listen ta my voice, Cherie." He soothed. "Ah promise ta get ya through this."

Her eyes locked with his but she made no indication that she understood him or even heard him. He heard the doors to the Danger Room open but didn't look up to see who had come in as continuous eye contact was crucial.

"Everythin's gonna be alright." He said and this time she nodded. He could feel her high running emotions start to dim as her eyes glazed over.

"Back off and I'll ice her!" Bobby called and the spell was broken.

Rogue flung herself away from him, awkwardly trying to move with her new fifteen foot wingspan. Remy sent a glare to Bobby who was glaring at Rogue and iced the floor under her feet. She slipped and cracked her head against the hard metal floor of the Danger Room.

She didn't get back up, instead she phased through the floor and into the hanger below. Gambit lunged and made a grab for her but his fingers just slipped through her arm. He slammed his fist down on to the spot were Rogue had been not a moment ago.

Ignoring the pain in his throbbing fist he bolted up and fisted his hand in the collar of Iceman's uniform. "Ah had her calmed down! Wha' the hell were ya thinkin'!" His accent getting thicker along with his anger.

Bobby glared at him so coldly that the temperature actually dropped a few degrees but it couldn't cool the anger coming from Remy. "She's dangerous, she shouldn't even be here. We should just hand her over to the MRD and be done with her!" He shouted back.

Gambit had the over whelming to either hit him or blow him up. The itch of his powers already at his finger tips. Instead he shoved him away. "May no' get the chance if she didn' survive the fall ta the hanger, homme." He snarled.

He spun around and raced out the door, the others had already gone a head without them to head Rogue off. With Kitty evacuating the students and Kurt out of commission, there was no way any of them would get down there in time to stop Rogue's four-story fall to the hanger floor. Hopefully she would tap into someone's mutation and save herself.

He could hear Iceman behind them as he raced down the hallways until he had caught up with the rest of the team. Jean was the first to reach the hanger doors and quickly typed in the code to open them. She slipped inside as soon as the doors opened wide enough for her to do so. The rest followed her in.

The sight that greeted them was ghastly and would surly haunt their nightmare's for the forseeable future. Even Emma had to turn away at the sight of Rogue's mangled body laying prone in a pool of her own blood. Her wings and legs were bent at odd angles, clearly broken. She wasn't moving and for a terrible minute he thought she was dead.

Jean who was kneeling down in her blood had checked for a pulse and thankfully found one, declaring it weak. Hank rushed past him with a stretcher and he moved forward to help gently lift her on to the stretcher.

From his vantage point by her head he could see that one of the broken bones in her arm had pierced through her skin and the sight made his stomach churn.

If she died he would kill Iceman.

A/N

Okay this is actually a new chapter and not just an updated chapter from before. I should be waiting until tomorrow to post this so I better see some reviews.


	6. Chapter 6

It had taken Kurt two hours to wake up after Rogue threw him into the wall and he had been told he was lucky he didn't have a concussion from the impact. His own health, however, was the last thing on his mind. Upon waking it was to find that Rogue was in surgery in an attempt to stabilize her condition.

Xavier was the one who was there when he awoke and was the one who filled him in on all that he had missed. After Rogue had knocked him out Gambit had used his empathy to hypnotize her until a telepath could arrive. Iceman interfered which sent her into another panic and cased her to phase through the floor and fall into the hanger which was why she was in surgery now.

Kurt had immediately asked why hadn't they let her absorb Logan, it was the clear path. The Professor went on to explain the fragile state of her mind from the sudden forced evolution. Kurt easily accepted his apology. He understood how different Rogue's mind and mutation were from the way Jean explained it to him before.

So he sat in a chair outside of the operating room and prayed for her, for himself and for the rest of the mutants in the mansion. They all needed God whether they believed so or not.

Kurt looked up from his muttered prayers when he heard someone walk into the medical lab. Scott walked in looking exhausted, they were all exhausted.

"Kurt." He greeted, his weariness soaking into his words.

"How are things up stairs?" He asked, any distraction to keep him from worrying over Rogue was welcome.

He gave a short nod. "The children are in their rooms, we temporarily patched the ceiling and cleaned up the mess."

"I am sorry I could not be of more help."

Scott waved his apology away. "You were thrown so hard into a metal wall that it left a dent." He said and turned his head slightly to the closed doors. "Have you heard anything on Rogue's condition yet?"

Scott hadn't been one of Rogue's most sympathetic supporters and didn't really support her at all. But he didn't hate her either, he was more weary of her presence within their ranks from her former affiliation. Kurt understood this, as a leader, one had to look after his own before giving help to a stranger.

"Nothing yet, I'm afraid." He said with a shake of his head. He was grateful that Scott was at least sympathetic to his budding relationship with his sister.

They were silent for several minutes before Scott spoke up again. "Why don't you get some rest in one of the beds down here so that you'll be here when she comes out of surgery?"

"I would prefer to wait for Rogue before I rest." He said closing his eyes.

Scott nodded and left him with a message that Jean was to contact him when she was out of surgery before leaving. He was alone once again in the medical lab, the silence weighing down on him. But that changed half an hour later when Piotr walked in.

The friendly giant didn't say a word as he pulled a chair over and sat next to him. Kurt turned and gave him a questioning look.

"I have sister as well." He said, his Russian accent thick. "I wait with you until she is safe, yes."

Kurt gave him an appreciative smile. "Thank you my friend." The silence wasn't so oppressive anymore now that he had a friend to help him lift it.

To his knowledge, Piotr had never objected to Rogue's presence. But then he never objected to much of anything.

It was two hours later that Jean emerged from the operating room looking like she had been up for a week. She gave both men a weak smile. "She made it through and we'll move her to recovery shortly."

Kurt had never felt the sort of relief that flowed through him with Jean's words. He stood up and enveloped her in a hug, thanking her profusely. He turned around and Piotr thrust his hand into his and shook it firmly.

That night Kurt slept on a cot next to Rogue's hospital bed. He couldn't bear to be apart from her in case anything else were to happen to her.

XxX

Rogue sat huddled up in her hospital bed with her knees pulled to her chest. She wanted to cry but had no more tears, they had all been spilt over the last week. When she had woken up after the incident it was to find her body broken and her brother hovering around her like a mother hen.

Xavier had explained what had happened to her and why she was in the state she was in. He had also apologized for triggering the whole mess, even though she didn't blame him one little bit, and assured her that he had fixed the damage.

They called Wolverine in after that so she could absorb his healing factor. Even though he agreed to it his memories and psyche told her that he blamed her for all that had happened to the mansion and thought she should have suffered the old-fashioned way of healing to make up for it. Silently, she agreed.

Rogue glanced over to the alarm clock next to her bed. It was just past three in the morning which meant it was time for her to leave. She walked over to the closet and grabbed her already packed bag and pulled out a sealed envelope. She laid it carefully on one of the pillows before walking over to the window.

She was too dangerous for the people here. They had tried to help her and she had nearly killed them. It was a wonder they hadn't kicked her out of their home as soon as she woke up. Jean and Hank had even spent hours in surgery trying to save her life and the Professor had gone into her mind to fix things up there. They had been beyond gracious when they should have just let her bleed out.

She wanted nothing more then to die. She caused those around her pain and a creature like her just shouldn't exist.

With a final glance around the room she jumped down and left in the quiet of the night.

XxX

Jean sat in the Professor's office, a cup of tea in her hands. She had been sipping at it for over half an hour now though it had long since gone cold. One week ago she had sat in this office with a woman so afraid of herself and others that she wanted nothing more than to end her life.

She had nearly succeeded if it weren't for Hank and herself and the four hours they had spent in surgery trying to save her life. She had even convinced Logan to let Rogue absorb him so that she wouldn't walk with a permanent limp for the rest of her life. He had agreed and grumbled the entire time sending dirty looks to Rogue.

Yesterday morning she had gone to Rogue's room to walk her down to the Professor's office for a session when she found her room empty with an envelope on the pillow. It had been a goodbye letter full of apologies for being such a burden on not only them but everyone else.

It left her in tears with Kurt refusing to leave his room, few other's felt the same as them. Hank became unnaturally social and had locked himself up in his lab yesterday afternoon. Remy was planning on taking a long vacation though Jean had the suspicion he was probably going to use his connections that his family had to search for her.

Xavier had searched for her but had come up empty-handed. That wasn't to say he had given up searching for her after only one day, but he had said he didn't hold high hopes as Rogue's mind was particularly difficult to trace.

Hopefully she would either return or they would find her before something bad happened.

A/N

Sorry I know its short which is why I'm posting it today. But mostly because I finished the actual story ad want to read your reviews.


	7. Chapter 7

**Two Years Later**

Kitty and Bobby walked down the side-walk of some podunk town in Oklahoma in their street clothes. The whole reason they were in this silly little town that didn't even have a traffic light was because somewhere here there was supposed to be the headquarters for the FoH.

Kitty glanced across the street at Scott who was interrogating an elderly couple in front of an antique shop. The couple kept shaking their heads and the woman had backed up to stand partially behind her husband.

"Does Scott really think he's being discreet?" Kitty asked, wrinkling her nose.

Bobby glanced over to their esteemed team leader who had started chasing the couple down the side-walk and out of sight. "Well, at least he's trying, right?"

They chuckled together and continued down the street. They walked for another twenty minutes before a woman pushed through the two of them, knocking both of them to the ground.

"Hey, watch where your going!" She shouted to the woman.

The woman turned around with a glare and it was then that Kitty saw her face. The white bangs and chestnut hair couldn't belong to anyone but Rogue. If her hair wasn't proof enough she sneered at the two and iced the sidewalk around them. Kitty shrieked at her before she ran off.

"Mutie!" Three men who had been across the street raced after Rogue as she turned a corner.

Kitty glared after her and looked over to Bobby who was laying on the ground with his eyes open, looking dazed. She crawled over to her friend, trying not to slip on the sheet of ice. "Bobby? Are you okay? Can you get up?"

He nodded and pushed himself into a sitting position as a crowd formed around them muttering about muties and how they should all be locked away.

"Yeah, I'm fine?" He said and stood up easily on the ice.

Kitty stood up with him and slipped before regaining her balance. "Come on, let's get back to the others." She said, carefully traipsing off the ice.

XxX

Rogue stopped running when she came to dead ended alleyway. Turning around to face her pursuers she sent them a dirty glare. She knew who they were, members of the Friends of Humanity. She also knew what they did to mutants which was the only reason why she was letting them capture her instead of flying away.

Hopefully Shadowcat and Iceman would randevu with the rest of the X-Men in town and get Wolverine to track her scent back to their headquarters. Then the X-Men could do what they do best and put a stop to their activities and during the chaos she could slip away and out of town.

"There you are you filthy mutie." One of them spat.

Another one of them picked up a pipe and lunged for her, swinging the pipe back and bringing it down on her back. She took a dive and pretended to lay crumpled on the dirty ground. With Ms. Marvel's powers, the blow didn't hurt, nor did it hurt when one of them kicked her in the side for good measure. Though her power's still came and went at odd times, she had a fairly good handle on the strength and invulnerability, the flying part was still an issue though.

"Get the collar on it would you Dave."

She had heard rumors of these collars but she hadn't known they were true until the cold metal was snapped around her neck. Every inch of skin tingled for a moment before it stopped and they lifted her limp form up.

"Open the trunk up Phil!" One of them called out to someone at the other end of the ally.

A minute later she was stuffed into a dark trunk. She prayed that the X-Men would track her to their base. Rogue knew the second they put the collar on her neck that she was in over her head.

XxX

Gambit grit his teeth together and looked away as Kitty and Bobby recounted their story of their run in with Rogue. No one had seen or heard from her in two years and then she just shows up out of the blue in some random town in Oklahoma. What was she doing here in the first place?

"She is back with Brothherhood of Mutants?" Piotr asked, glancing out of the side of his eye at Kurt who was glowering at his feet in the cockpit.

"I don't think so." Jean said, frowning at Bobby who had opened his mouth. "If she had, we would have seen her before now."

It was then that Logan walked back up the ramp to the jet. "Tracked her to a row of old warehouses just south of town." He said. "The place smells like death and she ain't the only one there."

Remy had searched the globe over for Rogue if only to keep an eye on her. But neither his connections in the Thieves Guild or the Assassins Guild had been able to find her. He feared that maybe she had finally done it and ended her life. Then Kitty and Bobby had started shouting in their communicator about Rogue and he had been flooded with relief that she was alive.

He hadn't cared that she attacked them because they were fine and that meant she was alive. He had been on board the jet with Nightcrawler at the time who had dropped to the ground praying in German and thanking God for his sister's health.

"You don't think the FoH got a hold of her?" Ororo asked and she too glanced at Kurt.

Kitty spoke up this time. "Well, after she asked the sidewalk and ran away, these three big guys ran after."

Jean and Scott shared a look. "Nightcrawler, you and Storm stay here and get the blackbird ready to pick us up. The rest of us will go to the warehouse and check it out." Scott said.

XxX

As it turned out the warehouse wasn't the headquarters for the FoH, but it was one of the many places across the country where they kept mutants and beat them for sport. With every dead or half alive mutant they came across Remy's stomach would drop further and further.

The Friends had abandoned the complex as soon as the X-Men had stormed in so there wasn't much fighting involved. In fact the only fighting there was when one big son of a bitch charged Piotr who knocked him through a wall and out f commission.

Remy raced along the halls looking for the sad girl with the white streaks in her dark hair. Something about her called to him whether it was her pretty face or his need to rescue a damsel in distress he didn't know. What he did know was that he had to get to her soon.

"Rogue!" He called out when he came across another group of cells.

Some of the mutants stirred, most didn't. He by passed them looking for her distinctive two toned hair. It wasn't until he reached the end of the row of cells that he saw her, her hair spilled around her like a halo.

He blew the lock off the door and rushed in, falling to his knees by her side. He lifted her head into his lap and carefully brushed a few blood spattered strands of white hair away from her pale face. It had only been a few hours since Kitty and Bobby had seen her and already she was in such a state.

The other mutants looked like they had been there for months and some were better off then her. What had happened.

"Rogue?" He called out to her gently.

She was so pale and the trail of dry blood on her chin was making him sick.

"Rogue?" He called louder this time.

A glint of light off the metal collar around her neck caught his eye. It was an inhibitor collar that they had found on other mutants the FoH had got their hands on. If it was on that meant her powers were off.

He used his middle and index finger to check her pulse and closed his eyes. There was no pulse, Rogue was dead. "Desole Cherie." He whispered and tried to push back the wrenching feeling in his chest.

"Is she dead?" A voice so quiet he almost hadn't heard spoke up from the cell next to hers.

He looked over to see a scrawny teenaged boy caked in dried blood and dirt watching him.

"Oui." Was all he could manage.

"It's 'cause that one guard kept tryin' to touch her." The boy said before coughing. "She broke his arm and then the other's started beatin' her."

He looked back down to her and held her just a little bit closer. What paths had led her to this? Was there anything that could have been done to save her from all this pain?

He pulled out a lock pick from his sleeve and had the collar off in no time. He couldn't let Kurt see her with it on like a dog. He reached for his communicator. "Ah found Rogue." He spoke. "There are a couple of mutants still alive down here on the east side o' the buildin'." He said.

"Gambit!" Nightcrawler shouted into his own communicator. "How is she? Is she okay?"

He couldn't bear to tell him over the radio. "Ah'm bringin' her back now."

He hated that it gave him false hope but there was no other way. He scooped her light form intio his arms and carried her out of the cell and down the hall. He rounded a corner and came face to face with Jean. She took one look at Rogue and her eye filled up with tears. He knew she had done a telepathic scan and found no form of life.

"There are others." He said and jerked his head to the hallway he had just exited. She brushed the tears away before they could fall and nodded. Leaving Gambit alone with her body again, though he could still feel the over whelming hurt rolling off her in waves.

The blackbird had already landed several yards away by the time he made it outside. Kurt was anxiously waiting on board. Every step he took filled him with a heavy dread.

"Rogue!" Kurt called and teleported to him. He hovered around her trying to take her in all at once.

"Je suis tellement désolé." He told him. "We didn' make it in time."

Kurt looked up to him with those big yellow eyes not understanding.

"She," He had never had to deliver such devastating news before. "Didn' make it, homme."

Understanding dawned in his eyes and he touched his bare hand to her cheek. Nothing happened. Remy moved forward to the jet and boarded with Kurt firmly holding Rogue's hand. Once on, he had passed her body off to Kurt who was muttering in German between tears.

Neither sibling deserved for things to turn out like this. It was made that much worse that their older brother was the leader of the FoH.

Several hours later they had boarded all the surviving mutants, seven total, and were on their way back to Westchester.

Kurt was still huddled in the back of the plane clinging to his sister and sobbing. It was heart wrenching to hear the normally happy jokester in such anguish. Even Logan and Emma couldn't muster up anything to say about Rogue. Probably because they would have been thrown from the plane if they had.

In the seat across the isle from him Kitty was in tears. She turned to him with and wiped the wetness from her cheeks. "She had to have known they were with the FoH, why did she attack us like that?"

Logan grunted from the seat in front of her. "Think about it. If they had taken you and Iceman it would have been hours to notice you went missing. Then I would have had to find your trail which would have taken a couple more hours. Those three who got her were probably following you and she turned their attention from you two to her."

"But why would she do that?" Kitty questioned and her voice watery.

"If y'all ran back ta us sayin' Rogue had attacked y'all an' seen where she ran off too. Then it would be easier fo' Wolverine ta track her." Remy said. "She saved yo' life, petite."

Kitty sniffled and burst into a fresh wave of tears.

"We'll hold a proper funeral for her when we get back." Scott announced from the cockpit.

It wouldn't make up for all the hardship she had been through but it was the only thing they could do.

"Why did they kill her though?" Bobby whispered so Kurt wouldn't hear them. "All the others had been there for months, she was only there for a couple of hours."

Remy glanced to Kurt who was still clinging tight to Rogue's body. "One o' the other prisoners said a guard tried ta mess wi' her." He raised his eyebrows meaningfully. "She broke his arm an' the other's beat her ta death."

Bobby turned a sickly green collar and sat back in his seat. A head of him he could see both Ororo and Jean shaking with tears as well.

It was such an awful end to her short, troubled life. She didn't deserve it, no matter how much she thought she did.

A/N

Its like I have no self control. Only one more chapter after this guys.


	8. Chapter 8

Irene lifted her hand off the girl's shoulder with a gasp. When her long time friend, Raven, had asked her to steer her daughter in her direction, she had never imagined it would lead to that.

As a mutant capable of seeing the future she felt it her responsibility to help those she could. Raven would be upset with her, but she couldn't in good conscious lead this unsuspecting child to such a fate.

"Are you alright, Ma'am?" The girl asked, backing away from her a couple of steps.

Contrary to everyone's belief, Irene, wasn't totally blind in her left eye. She could usually see dark vague shapes that were close to her. It allowed her the ability to look in the persons direction to whom she was speaking.

Irene reached out and grabbed the girls gloved hand. "Do not fear, child. I am here to help."

The girl twisted her hand weakly in her grasp but made no real effort to get away from her. "Ah don' know what your talkin' about." There was an edge of panic in her voice and she could see her shape shift back and forth.

"You are not the only special person here, Rogue." She said and lowered her sunglasses to the girl her milky white eyes. She heard the girl gasp and retreat further away from her but Irene held tight.

Righting her sunglasses she reached into her purse with her free hand and withdrew her wallet. She felt around for the special marked hundred-dollar bill and pulled it out. She then stuffed the bill into Rogue's hand.

"Take this down to the train station two blocks over and get on the next train to Westchester, New York." She instructed."There is a school there for people like us who will protect you."

"Ah - Ah couldn't possibly - " She started to say but Irene cut her off.

"Go child. Do not deviate from this path, do not stop until you reach Westchester." She ordered.

Irene released her hand and pointed in the direction of the train station. "Go! Run!"

Her image disappeared from sight as she ran. Raven might not forgive her for her betrayal but at least her daughter would live.

XxX

Remy looked around annoyed at the layover his train had made in St. Louis. He should have been back home in New Orleans by now but flooding in Kentucky had made that impossible.

He looked around at the crowded station and considered picking a few pockets while he was here when a pretty little thing stepped out of a sandwich shop attached to the station. He had seen girls dye their hair all sorts of colors before, but never had he seen someone dye two thick locks framing their face white with the rest a pretty chestnut-brown.

She glanced in his direction but didn't make eye contact which gave him a wonderful view of a pair of brilliant green eyes.

There were of course other ways to keep him occupied while he waited for the train. That reason was walking in his direction, her pretty green eyes focused on something behind him.

He took this as a sign from the fates and walked in her direction 'anciently' bumping into her. "Pardonnez-moi mon chéri." He said and smirked down at her as she looked up at him in surprise. "Ah was no' watchin' where Ah was goin'." He placed a hand on her waist because it was just too tempting not to.

Her face colored with a cute pink blush. "Oh, no, it's my fault." She said. "Ah wasn' watchin' where Ah was goin'."

It had been a while since he heard such a sweet, southern dipped voice like hers.

"Ah'm afraid the blame is all mine, chere." He insisted. Of course it was his fault, he had done it on purpose.

She smiled up at him timidly and glanced over to the direction he had come from. It was a train headed for Westchester, New York. There was only one thing in Westchester that someone of her age would travel alone to get to.

Maybe that white in her hair wasn't died after all.

He released her and she left with another apology before hurrying off to the train.

His father's friend Stormy had been begging him to come up and visit her for a while now. Perhaps it was time to finally take her up on that offer. And with a sweet little thing like that there, he was sure not to get bored any time soon.

He rushed over to the ticket office and traded his ticket in for one headed to New York. Watch out Westchester, Gambit was about to arrive.

He boarded the train and walked down the isle until he spotted her staring out of a window at the foot traffic. Silent as a thief he walked up to her and stopped.

"Ya mind if Ah take a seat, chere?" He asked.

Her head whipped around to stare at him in surprise. "Oh, sure." She said and started chewing on that plump bottom lip of hers. The things he imagined her doing with those lips should be illegal.

Remy slung his bag in the overhead compartment and sat down next to her. They sat there quietly for a couple of minutes before he pulled out a deck of cards and started shuffling. She glanced over to him shyly before looking away.

"Whatcha headin' up ta Westchester fo', chere?" He asked.

She floundered for a minute. "School." She decided on.

He nodded and turned in his seat to face her. His lanky legs brushing against hers. "Wouldn' happen ta be Xavier's Institute fo' the Gifted, would it?"

She paled and gave him an assessing once over, trying to decide if he was a threat of not. He decided to throw her a bone. "Tha's where Ah'm headin', got a friend there who's a teacher."

"Oh." Surprise shown on her face before morphing in to a sly smirk. "Are ya gifted?"

He returned her smirk and reached over to turn off his holowatch, showing her his unique red and black eyes.

The smirk slipped off her face and her mouth dropped open slightly. "Wow." She breathed and made to reach out and touch his face with her gloved hand before she pulled back. "Ah love ya eyes." She admitted and then blushed scarlet.

So she was shy, and sometimes impish. She blushed, had a nice body and pretty face and liked his eyes. If she was as good in bed as he suspected he might have to go buy a ring.

"Ah blow thin's up, chere wha's you' gift?" He asked and moved his arm to rest on the back of the bench seat.

"Ah absorb people." She said and looked down. "Memories, physical abilities an' mutant powers. Can' touch anyone without knockin' unconscious."

Untouchable, huh? Well, Lord knows he loves a challenge. Untouchable, we'll see.

A/N

Plot twist bitches! Hope you enjoyed it, that was the last chapter.


End file.
